Georgia Code
Chapter 22 - Clinical Laboratories
§ 31-22-9.1. Hiv Tests; Who May Perform Test

and which permits the identification of that person.
History. Code 1981, § 31-22-9.1 , enacted by Ga. L. 1988, p. 1799, § 8; Ga. L. 1989, p. 14, § 31; Ga. L. 2002, p. 660, § 4; Ga. L. 2002, p. 1259, § 11; Ga. L. 2009, p. 453, §§ 1-4, 3-5/HB 228; Ga. L. 2009, p. 859, § 3/HB 509; Ga. L. 2011, p. 337, § 10/HB 324; Ga. L. 2011, p. 705, § 6-3/HB 214; Ga. L. 2016, p. 752, § 3/HB 1058; Ga. L. 2021, p. 472, § 1/HB 93; Ga. L. 2022, p. 663, § 7/SB 164.
The 2021 amendment, effective July 1, 2021, substituted “HIV” for “AIDS” in subparagraph (a)(2)(G); substituted “conducted by a certified clinical laboratory” for “approved for such purposes by the regulations of the department” at the end of subparagraph (a)(12); substituted “Code Sections 31-22-10 and 31-22-11” for “Code Section 31-21-10 and Code Section 31-22-11” in subsection (b); substituted “that is certified; or” for “licensed under this chapter” in paragraph (b)(1); deleted former paragraph (b)(2), which read: “A clinical laboratory exempt from licensure under Code Section 31-22-9; or”; redesignated former paragraph (b)(3) as present paragraph (b)(2); and substituted “paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b) of this Code section; provided, however, that this shall not apply to the sale or offer of sale of an HIV test that has been cleared or approved for home use by the federal Food and Drug Administration” for “paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (b) of this Code section” at the end of subsection (c).
The 2022 amendments.
The first 2022 amendment, effective May 2, 2022, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, revised language and punctuation in paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(10), and (a)(13). The second 2022 amendment, effective July 1, 2022, substituted the present provisions of paragraph (a)(12) for the former provisions, which read: “‘HIV test’ means any antibody, antigen, viral particle, viral culture, or other test to indicate the presence of HIV in the human body, which test has been conducted by a certified clinical laboratory.”.
Cross references.
Confidential nature of AIDS information, § 24-12-20 .
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 1988, p. 1799, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “The General Assembly finds that Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and its causative agent, including Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), pose a grave threat to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state. In the absence of any effective vaccination or treatment for this disease, it threatens almost certain death to all who contract it. The disease is largely transmitted through sexual contacts and intravenous drug use, not through casual contact, and, while deadly, is therefore preventable. The key component of the fight against AIDS is education. Through public education and counseling our citizens can learn how the disease is transmitted and, thus, how to protect themselves and prevent its spread. The Department of Human Resources is encouraged to continue its efforts to educate all Georgians about the disease, its causative agent, and its means of transmission. In addition, voluntary testing should be encouraged for anyone who feels at risk of infection. While education, counseling, and voluntary testing are vital to the elimination of this epidemic, other measures are needed to protect the health of our citizens, and it is the intention of the General Assembly to enact such measures in the exercise of its police powers in order to deal with AIDS and HIV infection.”
Ga. L. 2022, p. SB 164, § 7/SB 164 purported to amend paragraph (a)(12) by deleting “, which test has been approved for such purposes by the regulations of the department”; however, the provisions actually read: “, which test has been conducted by a certified clinical laboratory”.
Code Commission notes.
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 1988, “counselor, social worker, or marriage and family therapist” was substituted for “counselors, social workers, or marriage and family therapists” in subparagraph (a)(9)(N) and “Trainee, student, or intern” was substituted for “Trainees, students, or interns” in subparagraph (a)(9)(Q).
Law reviews.
For article on the 2011 amendment of this Code section, see 28 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 147 (2011).

Structure Georgia Code